Christian Leadership

Prayer Request:  

Today, I am meeting with 5 pastors to record the lessons behind each of our Bible pictures.  Please pray for these recordings.  For now, we are recording in Liberian English and Kpelle.  I hope to record in all Liberia's dialects in the future.  Those who receive our training material will also receive audio recordings for each lesson.  This will help prevent false teaching from entering the church.  Here is a link you can download for a sample Liberian English recording.  We don't have the privilege of having a recording studio, so you will occasionally hear the sound of a chicken in the background.  Fun!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5Xgce5dX2DpMEk0cXNYWnBBb1U/view?usp=sharing

  

Devotion:

We just completed the pictures for Romans 1:1-14.  Though I have already shared this devotion with you, I am excited to share the pictures with you as well.  Enjoy!  

There are 10 character traits of a Christian leader that are listed in Romans 1:1-14.

Character Trait #1:  A Christian leader lives like a servant and not like a king.

“Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God” (Romans 1:1).

The word servant is the same greek word for the word “slave.”  Can you imagine introducing yourself using the word "slave"?  The world around us is intoxicated with titles.  Everyone wants to have an important title associated with their name.  The same was true in Paul’s day.  Think of all the important titles Paul could have chosen to use.  Paul was the author of Scripture, he had started numerous churches, and he had sacrificed and suffered greatly for the sake of the Gospel.  Despite all the high titles he could have chosen, he chose the title “Servant of Christ Jesus.”  

As you reflect on your walk with Christ, can you describe yourself as Christ's slave?  The highest position in God's Kingdom is the position of a slave.  A slave wakes in the morning, receives his instructions from his master and then goes about his day doing the his master's work.  This description of a slave should reflect every Christian's life regardless of occupation, age, or gender.  

Isn't it interesting how the Bible describes God's church.  God describes His church as a body and each of us as a body part (1 Corinthians 12).  Some are hands, some are feet... but none are the head.  The position of head is reserved for God alone (1 Col 1:18).  Let me ask you a question, what part of the body does the thinking?  Does the hand do the thinking?  No!  The head does all the thinking.  Can you imagine what your physical body would be like if each part thought on its own and did its own thing?  I am convinced that we, as Christians need to do less thinking and more listening to our wonderful Head.  As we develop the habit of listening and faithful obedience, we become slaves of Christ.

If you were to spend extended time with our family, you would likely hear my wife and me asking our children, “Are you acting like a servant or a king?”  This is a saying that we use often while training our children.  Let’s face it, there is a king inside of each of us that we must crucify if we are going to truly be servants of God.  A Christian leader must learn to live like a servant and not like a king. 

Character Trait #2:  A Christian leader has been sent by God on mission.

"Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God" (Romans 1:1).

The word apostle means, “sent one.”  Paul lived his life on mission.  Each day was filled with divine purpose.  He used both his times of joy and his times of suffering as opportunities to broadcast God's love to the watching world. 

The greatest honor for a Christian is to be chosen and sent by God.  The one who is sent has been given both a sacred trust and a fearful responsibility.  Those who are sent actually get to be ambasitors of God.  Wow, can you imagine being God's ambassador and speaking on His behalf?  

Perhaps you think this honor is reserved for a few select Christians.  That is not true.  This amazing, thrilling honor is for every Christian.  2 Corinthians 5:20 says, "We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us."  Your assignment from God for this day is simply a "listening" prayer away.  Please don't waste your life.  Please don't waste today.  Your life can impact eternity today.  You are called and are being sent (Matthew 28:19-20).  Fulfill you sacred trust and your fearful responsibility!

Character Trait #3:  A Christian leader's life is set apart.

“Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God” (Romans 1:1).

The words “set apart” means to put a fence around something.  If I want to set apart my yard, I put a fence around it.  Did you know that our God is a fence building God?  Have you ever allowed God to build you a fence?  God's fences are great!  They have a wonderful way of narrowing our activities, making us more fruitful.  It is not until you allow God to build your fence that you discover God's specific calling for your life. 

Most Christians have never allowed God to define their lives. They live with no Divine purpose nor specific calling.  Life simply happens to them as they bounce from activity to activity.  

To allow God to construct a fence around your life requires you to have complete trust and surrender to God.  He alone determines how far your fence goes and what is contained inside it.   

Most people are too fearful to allow God to build their fence.  They want to remain in control.  "If I allow God to define my life, He may send me as a missionary to Africa," they fear. Brothers and Sisters, run toward God.  Trust Him.  Surrender everything to him.  Hold nothing back.  Embrace whatever life God is calling you to.  Truly enjoy the wonderful journey of a Divinely directed life.   

Paul's life was, "set apart" by God for the Gospel.  God wants to set your life apart and give you a specific calling.  This calling is what He created you for.  You will be most satisfied as you live the life you were created for.  

Character Trait #4:  A Christian leader is humble not proud.

“through whom (Jesus) we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations” (Romans 1:5).  

Notice Paul did not say, “We have received apostleship and grace.”  He said, “We have received grace and apostleship.”  The order of words is important because it reveals Paul’s heart.  In essence Paul is saying, “It is only by God’s grace that I am who I am today.”  A Christian leader is truly humble, not proud. 

Character Trait #5:  A Christian leader praises others not self.

“First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world”       (Romans 1:8).

Is Paul praising himself or others in this verse?  How about you?  Do your conversations tend to lift others up or do they lift yourself up?  Christian leaders praise others, not themselves.  

Character Trait #6:  A Christian leader serves God with his or her whole heart.  

“For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the Gospel of his Son…” (Romans 1:9a)

When Paul says that he serves God with his spirit, he is saying, “I serve God from the deepest part of me.  I don’t just serve Him by my actions but I serve Him from the very core of my being.”  The driving force of a Christian leader is to serve God not self.   

Character Trait #7:  A Christian leader prays for those he or she is leading.

“… that without ceasing I mention you always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at last succeed in coming to you” (Romans 1:9b-10).

I have heard it said that if you look at a person’s checkbook, you are looking at their heart.  Scripture says, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:21).   I believe there is another gage of a person's heart that is equally revealing.  It is the gage of prayer.  The true condition of a person's heart comes out during prayer.  Those who are selfish, pray self centered prayers.  Those who have faith, have prayers that are full of faith.  Those who are hurting, cry out to God during their prayers...  The true condition of our hearts is revealed in our prayers.   As a Christian, the love of God has a growing impact on our lives and compels our prayers to become more focused on others than on ourselves. 

Character Trait #8:  A Christian leader is a life long learner.

“For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you - that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine” (Romans 1:11-12).

What do you think your pastor would do if the Apostle Paul wrote him and asked to preach at your church?  That is exactly what Paul did in verses 11-12.  Look at Paul’s heart as he offers to go to Rome and preach.  He didn't just say that he wanted to "impart some spiritual gift" (referring to teaching the Gospel) but he also said, “that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.”  

Here is what the Apostle Paul was essentially saying.  “I want to come and preach at your church.  When I am done, I want to sit down and have you preach to me.  I need to learn from you.”  Can you imagine the author of Scripture wanting to sit under your pastor’s teaching and learn from him, better yet, to sit with you and learn from you?  A Christian leader has a God given hunger for truth.  He never becomes proud, believing he knows everything.  He often sits under those he leads and learns from them.  

Character Trait #9:  A Christian leader follows God’s plan and not his own.

“I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles” (Romans 1:13).  

Brothers and Sisters in Christ, this truth if very important for us to learn.  Everyday, we are surrounded by good things that we could choose to do.  Surely, God would want us to do all the good things that are around us, right?  No!  As a Christian, our lives are not to be consumed by doing good things.  Our lives are to be consumed by doing the good things we are called to do.  Please do not misinterpret me.  This is not a license for apathy but it is a call for sweet fellowship with God in everything we do.  There is an enormous difference between doing good things and being led by God in the good things we do.  Paul desired to go to Rome to strengthen the church.  This was a good thing to do, right?  Yes, but it was not what he was called to do at the time.  The needs around us are huge.  We are not God, we are simply God’s servant.  We cannot and should not try to do everything.  Lasting fruit in your life will be found as you focus on doing the things you are called to.  You will know the things you are called to do as you spend sweet, sweet time listening to Jesus in prayer.  

Can you believe that God desires to give leadership to your day?  Stop and think about how amazing that is.  The Creator of the universe wants to give you step by step wisdom and direction as you go through your day.  What an incredible blessing!  Will you allow the Holy Spirit to direct your steps?  Will you sit and listen to Him through prayer?  If you do, your day will be a wonderful adventure no matter what happens.  Your day will be filled with good works that are divinely inspired as you are empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Character Trait #10:  A Christian leader serves everyone, not just a few.

“I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish.  So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome” (Romans 1:14).

Paul was referring to the Romans when he said he was obligated to the "Greeks".  He was speaking of Rome’s enemy when he mentioned the "barbarians."  He was talking about the smartest, most prestigious people in town when he referred to the "wise."  He was speaking of the lowest of the low when he mentioned the "foolish."  Get this, when Paul entered a town, his eyes and heart were focused on each of these people groups.  While talking to the prestigious, he still noticed the poor and would have often excused himself from the company of the wise so he could be with the lowly.  At times, he would have turned down meetings with big donors so he could experience Christian fellowship with the needy.  Paul loved everyone and he sought to serve them all, under the Holy Spirit's leading, regardless of race, gender, or status.

The word “obligation” is the same Greek word that is translated elsewhere in Scripture as “debt.”  Scripture teaches that every Christian is in debt in two ways:  First, we have a debt of love to pay to everyone (Romans 13:8).  Second, we are indebted to share the gospel with everyone we know.  This second debt is what Paul is referring to here in verse 14.  We are indebted to every man, woman, and child.  We owe them love and we owe them the wonderful Gospel.  

Application:

We are all leaders in one way or another.  Some lead ministries while others lead businesses.  Some lead their families while we all have friends we lead.  Please allow today’s Scripture to challenge you in the way you lead.  

Prayer to Pray:

Father, humble me.  Help me live like a servant and not as a king.  Teach me to truly love others.  I acknowledge that there is a king in me that needs to die so that I may truly live as Your servant.  Please help me to put the needs of others above myself.  Fill me with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. 

Romans Devotional #9: Given to Impurity

"Therefore God gave them up in the lust of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen" (Romans 1:24-25).

Bound to Sin:

During a recent teaching in the bush, I used an illustration about sin that my mother taught me when I was a child.  I had a young man come to the front of the room and asked him if he thought he was strong.  He smiled but said nothing.  Turning to a room full of pastors, I asked, "Is the man strong?"  "Ya, da man strong," was their answer.  I told them we were going to test the man's strength with a spool of thread.  The class laughed. "Sin is like this thread," I said, "you think you master it but one day it will master you."  With that, I unwound about 6 inches of thread, holding it between my two hands, I asked the class if they thought the man could break it.  "Ya, da man break da tred" was their response (Liberian English).  With no effort, the man snapped the thread.  Next, I held out several pieces of thread and asked the class if they though the man could break them.  The class laughed saying, "tred caunt hole da strong man."  Again, with no effort the thread broke.  Next, I read verses from Scripture that talk about sin leading to bondage.  I looked intently in the young man's eyes and told him that sin could bind even him.  I had the man hold the thread with his hands folded across his chest.  While teaching, I had the man spin as the thread wrapped numerous times around his body.  After a few minutes, I asked the class if they thought the man could break free.  The class was fully convinced that thread could not hold a strong man.  I told them, "I want you to never forget that sin is like this thread, you think you master it but one day, it will master you."  We all counted down 3, 2, 1 and the man struggled with all his might but could not break free.  The class was shocked.  He was bound.  

The theme of Romans 1 is, "They are under sin."  Romans 1 talks about "their" sin while chapter 2 talks about "your" sin.  While talking about "their" sin in chapter 1, Romans mentions 4 reasons why "they" deserve the wrath of God.  During the last lesson, we learned the first reason:  Though they "knew" God they did not worship Him, they betrayed Him.  Today, we are studying the second reason.  

Jesus once told a parable about a wayward son (Luke 15:11).  In this story, the wayward son asked his father for his inheritance, early.  The loving father graciously gave him his inheritance, resulting in the son leaving and spending it on wild living.  In time, the son came to the end of himself and returned to the father.  Jesus told this parable to help us understand what our Heavenly Father does to those who have a rebellious heart.  God gives them over to their sins so they will come to their senses and repent.  One of the sins God gives them over to is impurity.?  

They were given to Impurity:

Lets read Romans 1:24-25 again.  

24."Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves 25.because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen."  

These two verses describe a tragic wedding that took place between people and sin.  Due to their wayward hearts, God gave them to impurity.  It is important to know that God gave them to impurity only after they had already given themselves to the sin.  Ephesians 4:19 says, "They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity."  

As you read Romans 1:24-25, picture God as a loving Father, "They" are the bride and "Impurity" is the groom.  It is a dreadful thing for God to give a person away in marriage to sin!  Think about the seriousness of the words you are about to read.  In this verse, God walked them down a spiritual isle, placed "their" hand into the hand of impurity, let go, and gave ownership of their lives to impurity.  God then steps back and "they" became slaves of impurity (Romans 6:16).  They are now free from the control of righteousness.  God lets "impurity" do its evil work in them hoping they will repent.  Impurity now owns them.

What is "impurity?"  The greek word for impurity means moral uncleanness. People become morally unclean as they follow the lust of their hearts (Romans 1:24).  This sin looks different for different people.  For some, the sin leads to substance abuse.  Their flesh desires the high that comes from alcohol and drugs.  They begin using alcohol and drugs to take the edge off their day rather than allowing God to be their source of peace.  Slowly, they slip deeper and deeper into substance abuse and become impure.  For others, their flesh desires sex.  These people spend away themselves in various relationships or are filled with the lust of pornography.  For many, their flesh hungers for material possessions.  They work hard to acquire new possessions not realizing this pursuit will never satisfy.  In time, these possessions begin to possess them.  Many people chase after words of affirmation.  These people work hard for the next complement and words of praise.  Unfortunately, man's affirmation can never satisfy.  The desire to look beautiful is another lust of the heart.  Those who chase after beautify stop at nothing to have the perfect shape, wearing only the clothes that make them feel beautiful.  The list could go on and on.  Thinking they will never be mastered by impurity, impurity slowly wraps its evil chords around them until they are in bondage to sin.  

Impurity has completed its work when they have exchanged truth for lies and begin worshiping and serving created things rather than the Creator (Romans 1:25).  God gave them to this sin hoping they would repent.  If they refuse repent, God will give them to another sin.  We learn about these other sin in the next two lessons.

Bible Marking:

Next to Romans 1:24 write, "They were given to impurity."

Prayer to Pray:

Father, we boldly walk before Your throne, humbly bow down, and ask You to please judge our lives now while we have time to repent.  Reveal truth about ourselves that we do not see.  Reveal all our sins and wickedness.  Please forgive us for our sins.  We are truly sorry for the times in our lives when we have served created things and not You.  Please break the chords of sin that hold us so we can serve You in freedom.  We want our only desire to be Your desire, our only love to be Your love.  We give You our lives again.  Please empower us to walk in righteousness.  We love You. 

Review:

Chapter Summary Picture:  They are under sin

Overview of the Gospel:  Romans 1:14-16. 

The Gospel is for everyone.  The Gospel is the power of God for the salvation of all who believe.

The map of salvation.  We are saved by faith.

The message of the Gospel:  God wants to destroy sin and save the sinner.

They are guilty of 4 sins:  Romans 1:19-32

 Sin 1: They are without excuse, they knew and betrayed God

Sin 2:  They were given to impurity and did not repent

Scripture quotations are from The ESV (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version). copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, used by permission, All rights reserved.

Romans Devotional #8: They Betrayed God

19.For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.  20.For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.  So they are without excuse.  21.For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.  22.Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23.and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things" (Romans 1:19-23).

Their Sin:

The focus of chapter 1 is on "their" sin.  The words they, them, their, and themselves are mentioned 25 times in the 13  verses of Romans 1:19-32.  Contrast this with the 35 times the words you, your, and yourself are mentioned in chapter 2.  To gain a full understanding of sin, it is important for us to apply all that we read in chapter 1 to "them" and chapter 2 to "yourself."  

In the Old Testament there was a famous king named David.  David's greatest failure was his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba, resulting in her pregnancy   The king used everything at his disposal to cover his sin.  After exhausting all other means, David arranged to have Bathsheba's husband killed.  Following Uriah's death, David married Bathsheba and thought his troubles were behind him.  That was, until God spoke to the prophet Nathan.  

God gave Nathan the assignment of confronting the king's sin.  Nathan was very wise in how he spoke to David. Nathan told David a story of someone else's sin before confronting David's sin.  When King David heard the story of a rich man's cruelty toward a peasant, David's anger flared and he demanded the rich man be brought to justice.  David's judgment opened the door for Nathan to say these heart chilling words, "David, you are that man" (2 Samuel 12:7).

Nathan was wise.  He understood human nature.  He knew it would be easier for David to see sin in another person than it would be to see his own sin.  Ultimately, Nathan helped David see his own sin by looking first at someone else's sin. 

While confronting sin, Paul skillfully used Nathan's strategy in the book of Romans by talking about "their" sin in chapter 1 before talking about "your" sin in chapter 2.  So, for now, you are off the hook.  There is no need to become defensive nor to live in denial as you read chapter 1.  Chapter 1 is not about you.  Read chapter 1 the same as you would read a tabloid that exposes other people's secret sins.  Watch from a distance and see what happens as wicked people interact  with a holy, sinless God.  By the end of chapter 1, you will likely think to yourself, "Wow, those people are truly messed up."

They betrayed God:

While addressing sin, "They are without excuse," were the first words written from the divinely inspired pen of Paul.  If Romans 1 were a movie, the music would be chilling as the words,"no excuse" spill out of the mouth of God.  God would then turn, looking into their eyes, while shaking His head, saying softly, "You have no excuse because you knew me.  I made myself known to you."

Betrayal, is the first sin "they" were guilty of.  Verse 19 makes it clear that God chased them like a passionate lover, revealing everything that could be known about Himself.  Everywhere "they" looked they were surrounded by revelations of God's invisible attributes, eternal power and divine nature.  God revealed these things to them through creation.  Revelations of God endlessly blared out of creation like a large sound system playing at full volume.  

They knew God intimately:

"For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him" (Romans 1:21).

Romans 1:21 shows the depth of their betrayal by revealing how well they knew God.  The Greek word "knew" in verse 21 is the same word used to describe Mary and Joseph's relationship in Matthew 1:25.

"When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son.  And he called his name Jesus" (Matthew 1:24-25).

Their betrayal was serious.  Their knowledge of God was not casual but intimate.  God was more than friendly toward them, yet they rejected Him for another lover.  As a result, their minds became full of worthless thoughts and their foolish hearts were darkened.  This is the greatest betrayal known to man.  God created the world and gave it as a home to His lover.  In response, His lover worshiped and served God's creation while rejecting Him.  

You may ask, "How did they know God intimately?"  Let me ask you a few questions, the breath they breathed, who gave it to them?  Who kept their heart beating?  Who sent rain on their fields so they could eat?  Who watched over them while they slept and woke them in a new day?  They were completely dependent upon God for every aspect of their lives yet they gave God the one finger salute as they chased other lovers.  They used the very breath God gave them to curse God.  God's love is amazing.  While cursing God, He kept their hearts beating and continued to give them the breath of life.  They are truly without excuse.  

Examine the picture:

We are in the process of creating new pictures for the remainder of this chapter.  For now, I will share the pictures we are currently using.  Look at the picture at the top of this post.  The message of this picture is, they are without excuse because they know God through His creation.  

The picture we are painting keeps this theme but adds in the idea of betrayal.  Once the picture is finished, I will share it with you.  Like the picture above, the background will show God's creation.  The picture's focal point, however, will be different.  It will be of a Liberian woman dressed in her wedding gown, throwing away her wedding ring, walking away from Jesus as He chases her.  

Mark your Bible: 

1.  Above chapter 1, write these words, "They are under sin." This will remind you that Chapter 1 is about "their" sin.

2.  Next to Romans 1:19 write these words, "They are without excuse, they knew and betrayed God."  

3.  Underline the word knew in Romans 1:21.  Write, "Matthew 1:24-25" next to the verse to remind you that they knew God intimately.

Prayer to pray:

Thank You for loving me.  Thank You for chasing after me when I am rebellious.  You are a passionate lover.  Thank you for sustaining me even when I have been unfaithful.  I repent.  There is none like You!  Please forgive my sins and lead me through this day.

Review:

Chapter Summary Picture:  They are under sin

Overview of the Gospel:  Romans 1:14-16. 

The Gospel is for everyone.  The Gospel is the power of God for the salvation of all who believe.

The map of salvation.  We are saved by faith.

The message of the Gospel:  God wants to destroy sin and save the sinner.

They are guilty of 4 sins:  Romans 1:19-32

 Sin 1: They are without excuse, they knew and betrayed God

Scripture quotations are from The ESV (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version). copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, used by permission, All rights reserved.

Romans Devotional #7: They are under Sin

Chapter Summary Pictures:

Before we move forward in this study, I need to introduce you to chapter summary pictures.  You may have noticed that today's picture is oriented vertically on the page while other pictures lay horizontally.  The pictures that stand vertically are chapter summary pictures while those that lay down horizontally summarize verses within each chapter.  While teaching these lessons in Liberia, we clip the pictures to a clothes line so people can see the message of Romans from beginning to end.  Since the chapter summary pictures stand vertically, it is easy to see where one chapter ends and another begins.

We use a lot of repetition in our teaching and have our students take turns retelling the story behind each picture.  By the end of the study, our students are able to retell the message behind each picture and thus retell the book of Romans by memory.  For us, this is the solution we have discovered for training illiterate or barely literate ministers of the Gospel.  Our pictures, along with recorded Scripture (distributed on micro memory chips or solar powered audio Bibles) become their oral and visual Bibles.  As you go through this study, take time to review past pictures.  Make it your goal to memorize the message behind each picture.  

Let's take a moment and review the flow of the book of Romans.  Romans is divided into 5 parts.  For now, it is not important to know the chapter breakdown for each section.  Try to memorize this flow for Romans: 

Part 1:    Sin 

Part 2:    Salvation

Part 3:    Sanctification 

Part 4:    God's Sovereignty 

Part 5:    Our Service.

Today, we start the study of sin (Chapters 1-3).  Let's take sin, place it under a microscope and see what we learn.  I have to warn you, the study of sin leads us to dark and hopeless places.  Though the journey ahead is dark, we must go through it so we can understand the fullness of salvation (Chapters 3-5).

Look again at the summary picture for Romans 1.  The message of chapter 1 is, "They are under sin."  Later we will learn that the message of chapter 2 is, "You are under sin."  For today's devotion, read Romans 1:19-32.  As you read, circle the words "they," "them," and "their" in your Bible. You will be surprised how often they occur.  Notice the words "you," "your," and "yourself" are not mentioned in chapter 1.  These words are reserved for chapter 2.  Chapter 1 is about "their" sin and chapter 2 is about "your" sin.  As you read chapter 1, do not think too much about your sin.  Chapter 1 is not about "you."  It is about "them."  Let your mind wander as you look at the effects of sin in other people.   

Note:  Chapter 1 uses the words "they," them" and "there" to describe Gentiles.  Chapter 2 uses the words "you," "your," and "yourself" to describe Jews.  

Prayer to Pray:

Father, please help me understand the Gospel's message.  I want to see it clearly.  Use its message to change my life.  I know that the Gospel is the power of God for the salvation of all who believe.  Please pour out this power on me.  Save me and make me holy.  

Review:  

Overview of the Gospel:

Romans 1:14-16. The Gospel is for everyone.  The Gospel is the power of God for the salvation of all who believe.

Romans 1:17.  The map of salvation.  We are saved by faith.

Romans 1:18.  The message of the Gospel:  God wants to destroy sin and save the sinner.

SIN Romans 1-3

Romans 1:  They are under sin.

Romans Devotional #6: Overview of the Gospel, Part 2

The Map of our Salvation

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.  For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith" (Romans 16-17).

When was the last time you used a map or GPS device?   This year, I brought a Garmin GPS unit with me to Liberia.  I mounted it on my dirt bike and use it while traveling to remote towns and villages.  One of the greatest thrills of my life is traveling down remote roads that do not exist on GPS while taking the Gospel where few people have gone.  As I travel, I watch the GPS blaze new roads on my monitor.  Fun!  

The job of a map is to direct people from their known location to an unfamiliar but desired destinations.  In Romans 1:17, God gave us the most important map we will ever read.  It is the map of our salvation.  

While teaching this verse to Liberians,  I ask them to draw a map to salvation.  How do we get from where we are to Heaven?  Where does salvation's journey start and where does it end?  Their answers reveal their faith.  Most Liberians are confused when it comes to salvation.  Their answers are a mixture of tribal beliefs and religious activities.  

What about you?  Can you draw a map to salvation?  If I asked you to explain where you believe salvation starts, the steps you need to take during salvation's journey, and where salvation's road ends, what would you say?    

Read Romans 1:16-17 again and see if you notice the map God gave us for our salvation.  

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.  For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith" (Romans 1:16-17).

God's map is very simple.  Our journey starts and ends at faith, nothing more, nothing less.  When our lives are over we will realize that every step we took regarding salvation was a step of faith.  We are saved by faith, not by any of our good works.  Look at the picture above.  As our study continues, this picture will take on more meaning.  We are saved from faith to faith.

The Wrath of God

"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth"  (Romans 1:18).

To understand this verse, we must first understand the fearful wrath of God.  I remember sitting in my living room, March 21, 2003 watching my television as the United States began it's Shock and Awe campaign against Saddam Husain.  The goal of Shock and Awe was to have such an overwhelming demonstration of force that our enemies would loose perspective of the battlefield and surrender in fear.  During Shock and Awe, our military struck secret targets that our enemy thought we knew nothing about.  The message to our enemy was clear, you cannot run, you cannot hide, surrender or die.  Leading up to the day bombs started dropping on Bagdad, the United States built up the full strength of it's military forces on Iraq's borders.  At exactly 12:15 p.m. the United States unleashed its wrath against Saddam's regime.  The word wrath implies the use of one's full power, full knowledge, and full ability in judgment against someone or something.  

Now, let's think about God wrath.  Try to imagine God's unlimited power and His unfathomable wisdom being used to their full extent in pouring out judgment on someone or something.  This is a fearful thought.  Consider the fear that is produced by the sound of a single lightening bolt when it strikes and shakes the ground.  A lightening bold is microscopic compared to a full demonstration of God's wrath. I shutter thinking about it.

Read Romans 1:18 again and see if you can identify who or what God's wrath is against.  Is God's wrath, in this verse, against unrepentant sinners or is it against sin?

"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth"  (Romans 1:18).

A careful reading of Romans 1:18 reveals that God's wrath, in this verse, is against sin and not against the sinner.  This is good news for us!  What an awesome way to introduce the book of Romans.  The image we get from this verse is of God at full-fledged war against sin, not the sinner.  The message of salvation is clear, God wants to destroy sin and save the sinner.  It is not until Romans 2:5 that we read about God's dreadful wrath against unrepentant sinners.

You may ask, when did God pour out His wrath against sin?  God's wrath was poured out as the full wisdom, power, and ability of God hung on the cross.  Jesus died and won the war against our sins by raising from the dead.  We will talk more about this later.

Prayer to Pray:

Father, You are good and your love endures forever.  Thank You for Your desire to destroy sin and save me.  I hate the sins that I struggle with.  Teach me how to walk in holiness.  I submit to you.  My faith is in You alone.  Do whatever it takes to produce righteousness in me.    

Review:  
Overview of the Gospel:

Romans 1:14-16 teaches us two things:  
1.  The Gospel is for everyone.  
2.  The Gospel is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.   

Romans 1:17 reveals the map of our salvation.  We are saved "from faith to faith."  Every step we take is a step of faith.

Romans 1:18. The message of the Gospel is, God wants to destroy sin and save the sinner.